1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, such as a digital camera, and more particularly, to a face detection method and apparatus using a level-set method that is capable of quickly detecting the shape of a face from an image.
2. Description of the Related Art
Image processing devices use principal component analysis (PCA) in order to detect human faces. PCA is a technique of dividing a learning image into a plurality of eigen images that represent features of the learning image using the statistical characteristics of the learning image and then rendering an image using a linear combination of the eigen images.
In other words, PCA, which is one of the most widely used face detection methods, analyzes arbitrary input data using principal components extracted using a plurality of eigenvalues and a plurality of eigenvectors.
However, PCA is vulnerable to variations in pose and illumination. In other words, PCA provides low face detection rates especially when detecting a face in an image where a person horizontally or vertically moves his or her face or where illumination abruptly changes.